Much Ado about Nothing
Lesson 1
Planning an answer
Objectives
9R14 - analyse scenes
9W6 – terminology for analysis
9W7 – layers of meaning
Resources
E.1 – E.6
Remember 10 minutes
Distribute E.1a which contains examples of pupil responses which would contribute to gaining a L4, 5, 6 and 7. Ask pupils, in pairs, to put them in rank order .
De-brief to clarify the correct order which, associating A with L6, B with L7, C with L4 and D with L5 using E.1b.
Display OHT E.2 showing some of the characteristics which contribute to gaining of L6 & 7 & distribute individual copies. Make explicit the key markers of progress. If pupils are familiar with the PEE formula for constructing an answer, point out to them that the key features of answers contributing to L6 and L7 require the final E to include analysis, personal response, linking of themes and ideas across the scenes and reflection on the writer’s intentions and viewpoint. Describing this as PEE+ is a useful prompt.
Model 15 minutes
Display OHT E.3 which contains example question 1:
Much Ado about Nothing
Act 3 Scene 2 lines 39 to 92
Act 4 Scene 1 lines 18 to 55
In these sections Claudio behaves in different ways according to the situations and the people around him.
Imagine you are going to direct these scenes for a class performance.
Explain how the actor playing Claudio should show his reactions and why.
Demonstrate on OHT E.3 how to annotate the question.
Remind pupils that a key feature of answers contributing to gaining a L6 & 7 is a clear organisation including an introduction and conclusion. Explain that planning your answer quickly but carefully before writing helps to achieve these higher levels.
Display OHT E.4 of 4-way plan. Explain that this is an effective way to organise ideas.
Demonstrate how to highlight quotations and then organise these ideas using a blank 4-way plan on OHT E.5 (Use E.6 as a prompt to show PEE)
Try and Apply 20 minutes
Organise pupils into small groups of 4 or 5. Using E.7 allocate a different question and blank 4-way planning grid (E4) to each group
Pupils then work in groups to:
1. Annotate the question carefully.
2. Highlight the most relevant quotations for use in answering this question.
3. Collate their ideas on the 4-way planning grid.
Secure 10 minutes
Draw the class back together again and explain that a good introduction is important because it sets out the main argument or idea that will be developed in the answer. Use shared writing to draft an introduction to the Claudio performance question planned earlier in the lesson. Begin the process by writing the opening sentence and then inviting pupils to help you shape the rest of the paragraph.
Homework
Distribute individual pupil copies of E.8 which is an example of a pupil essay. Ask pupils to:
1. Read the essay carefully.
2. Try to decide which level they think it would contribute to gaining.
3. Annotate the successful features by underlining key sentences and explaining how they demonstrate the level.
Lesson 2 Much Ado about Nothing
Writing an answer
Objectives
9R14 - analyse scenes
9W6 – terminology for analysis
9W7 – layers of meaning
Resources
Blank A5 card – I per pupil
Remember 15 minutes
Remind pupils of the homework task based on the essay showing features of level 6 response on ‘Much Ado about Nothing’ which was to identify the important features of an essay which would contribute to gaining a level 6. Allow pupils to work in pairs to discuss their work and then take suggestions from pairs and list these on a piece of sugar paper or the board. If pupils do not offer all the key features associated with gaining a level 6+, make sure they are added. Then pose the question: What 3 things would improve this and contribute to gaining a level 7? Use E.2 as support and allow them a few minutes to discuss this.
Invite pupils to reflect on their own strengths and then to identify 3 targets that would help them improve the quality of their written responses and help achieve their predicted level. Ask them to write the targets on the blank A5 cards – they will use these in the remainder of the lesson. Encourage them to internalise the targets as they will need to keep them in mind when they are writing in the examinations.
Model 15 minutes
Demonstrate how to write a PEE+ paragraph. Stop the process periodically to show when different levels have been reached. Use the performance question from lesson 1.
Characteristic of answers from pupils who gain Level 4
Claudio is angry. He must frown. He calls Hero a ‘rotten orange’ which shows that he is angry with her.
Characteristic of answers from pupils who gain Level 5
Claudio’s anger is shown when he says, ‘Give not this rotten orange to your friend, she’s but the sign and semblance of her honour.’ This shows that Claudio thinks that she is only pretending to be good. I think he would shout this to show his feelings.
Characteristic of answers from pupils who gain level 6
Claudio becomes cruel and violent when he demands of Leonato, ‘take her back again’. It would be appropriate for the actor to push Hero roughly away as he exclaims, ‘She’s but the sign and semblance of her honour’. His reactions here need to be extreme in order to shock the audience.
Characteristic of answers from pupils who gain level 7
This is a highly dramatic and significant moment: Claudio should push Hero away as he demands Leonato ‘take her back again’. With a mixture of heartless exclamations and rhetorical questions, Claudio publicly humiliates Hero. He relentlessly berates her ‘cunning sin…her guiltiness’ and says that she is worse than an animal ‘in savage sensuality’. In my opinion, this sets up the pivotal moment of the play when love and trust take over from hatred and deception.
Show pupils how the two more successful answers extend the final E into a more thoughtful and perceptive answer.
Try 5 minutes
Ask pupils to work in pairs and discuss ideas for the next paragraph to be written by themselves. Ask them to focus on how they will extend the final E of the PEE+ format.
Apply 10 minutes
Ask pupils to work independently on the next paragraph using the features contributing to level 6/7 and their target cards. Build in a few minutes for pupils to check their writing against the criteria and their own 3 targets. Ask 3 pupils to write their paragraphs on an OHT so they can share them with the rest of the class. It would be useful to identify pupils who will demonstrate a confident L6 and L7.
Secure 15 minutes
Display the 3 pupils’ paragraphs on OHT and ask the class, as they read them, to identify the characteristics of an answer which would contribute to gaining level 6 and/or a level 7, pointing out strengths and weaknesses. Invite the 3 pupils to comment on their thinking when constructing their paragraphs, in particular how they used the criteria and their target cards to shape their writing. Finish the lesson by asking pupils to reflect on the 2 lessons and to remember to use their targets in the examinations. You might like to suggest to them that they could write these on the planning paper when they begin the examination and use them as a check list at the end.